HTC One M9 software experience: classic Sense

HTC has been around the block with Android, even creating the very first Android phone. Another thing that the company revolutionized was the area of manufacturer-designed user interfaces. With the launch of its Sense UI, HTC began a trend of creating custom UIs that has continued to this day. As Android has grown and matured, so has Sense, all the while maintaining a classic feel.

The HTC One M9 comes loaded with Sense 7, which is an iterative update of the Sense UI. The primary difference between Sense 6 and Sense 7 is that Sense 7 features a new home widget that tries to tailor itself based on your current location. When you’re at home, it’ll display icons for things like Music and YouTube. When you’re at work, it becomes more productivity-focused, and when you’re out and about, it’ll display things like Maps to help you find activities. It’s nowhere near the most advanced service of its type, but it’s something new.

The rest of Sense will be familiar to those who have used a One device. The Sense visuals still cover most portions of the UI, which isn’t a bad thing considering that Sense has had the visuals nailed down for a while. BlinkFeed is also still around: simply swipe to the farthest left home screen and you’ll find it. If you’re unfamiliar, BlinkFeed is HTC’s news screen that aggregates updates from all sorts of selected social networks and also brings in stories from publications that you can choose. For some, BlinkFeed may be very useful, while others may have no use for it.

The software is fast and fluid, so there aren’t any complaints in the performance department. As a whole, Sense is still a fantastic UI. It’s well thought out and has continued to set a bar in UI design. Stock Android has advanced enough that Sense no longer has many advantages over it, but it also doesn’t have much for disadvantages. It’s simply a great UI that continues to garner praise.